INSIDE MMA on AXS TV with series hosts Mauro Ranallo and Bas Rutten featured MMA referees John McCarthy and Herb Dean on Friday, Sept. 2. Ranallo is also host of WWE SmackDown Live on USA Network and WWE Cruiserweight Classic on WWE Network.

INSIDE MMA on AXS TV with series hosts Mauro Ranallo and Bas Rutten featured MMA referees John McCarthy and Herb Dean on Friday, Sept. 2. Ranallo is also host of WWE SmackDown Live on USA Network and WWE Cruiserweight Classic on WWE Network.

Talking with WWE alum CM Punk, MMA referees on AXS TV’s INSIDE MMA

A week ahead of former WWE Champion Phil “CM Punk” Brooks’ MMA and UFC debut, INSIDE MMA correspondent Ron Kruck sat down with him at his gym, Roufusport, in Milwaukee, Wis., which aired Friday, Sept. 2 on AXS TV.

The full feature is available below, detailing Brooks’ challenging transition from pro wrestling to MMA, having little athletic background, with additional input from training partner former UFC champion Anthony Pettis and coach Duke Roufus.

INSIDE MMA series hosts Mauro Ranallo and Bas Rutten spoke with MMA referees Herb Dean and John McCarthy for a special, roundtable discussion about the third man in the cage. In this fascinating conversation, Dean and McCarthy discuss how their love of MMA led them to referee; how they handle criticism from both fans and fighters, such as UFC stars Jon Jones and Daniel Cormier; and what the new changes to Unified Rules of Mixed Martial Arts mean for the evolution of MMA.

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Earlier in the evening, AXS TV FIGHTS: LION FIGHT 31 featured four Muay Thai title fights, headlined by Jorina Baars (41-0-3), who handed Angela Whitley (14-1) her first loss to retain her welterweight title.

AXS TV Fights presents more LIVE mixed martial arts and kickboxing events than any other television network with 40+ LIVE world-class fight cards each year. "The Voice" Michael Schiavello and UFC Hall of Famer Pat Miletich call all the action as champions, challengers, and top prospects take center stage every Friday at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT.

AXS TV Fights can be found online, on Facebook and on Twitter. AXS TV is widely distributed in the U.S. via AT&T U-verse, Charter, Comcast/Xfinity, DIRECTV, DISH, Suddenlink, Verizon FiOS, and other cable, satellite and telco providers. The network is also carried in Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean.